Category Archives: Inflammation

How following a Paleo-inspired eating regime can be your ticket to permanent fat loss once and for all. How are those resolutions you made for 2016 coming along so far? Are you on track, or are you part of the nearly 80 million Americans who don’t even stick with their goals for a single week?1 From losing that extra weight you’ve put on during the holidays, making regular exercise a higher priority or just trying to make healthier food choices to feel better, chances are strong that you’re one of the 45% of Americans who have resolved to take charge…

It’s often times a diagnosis of cancer, diabetes, multiple sclerosis (MS), or another disease which proves to be the pivot point for individuals to make significant changes to their eating and exercise habits. Whether the change stems from obvious reasons, like losing weight because obesity has been the causal agent for developing type 2 diabetes, or per the advice of their physicians to cut out gluten and dairy following an autoimmune diagnosis, these steps are reactive versus proactive. If we were to exercise daily and eat foods that set us up for health, rather than sickness in the first place,…

Dear Dr. Cordain, Thank you for your great YouTube vidoes and your website. I found them last week after some detours through a few pale imitators, and have begun transitioning to the Paleo diet according to your interpretation, which I consider to be the most authentic. In only about a week, I am feeling much less bloated, have fewer cravings, and think my body looks slightly different. I love how deeply the foundations of the diet have been researched and how well you explain it. I have a question about maca root, which I have just learned is from a…

Do you believe that “our modern lifestyles, including nutrition, are the cause of current health problems?” If so, you could be susceptible to “fad diets,” according to the United Dairy Industry of Michigan (UDIM). Last week, the organization’s Technical Advisor for Nutrition, Lois McBean, wrote that those who follow the Paleo diet “are likely setting themselves up for nutritional deficiencies by eliminating entire food groups such as dairy, grains, and legumes.”1 McBean went on to observe, “Such restrictive diets are not consistent with current dietary recommendations including USDA’s MyPlate or the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans.” It’s interesting that she…

As you probably already heard, earlier this week the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), which is the World Health Organization’s (WHO) cancer agency, categorized processed meat as “carcinogenic” and unprocessed red meat as “probably carcinogenic.”1 What you might not have heard is that in an accompanying Q&A document, the IARC also said, “Eating meat has known health benefits.”2 Those who read the IARC’s statement and its Q&A document are likely to conclude that this story is nowhere near as dramatic and consequential as headlines from The Guardian, The New York Times, and other news outlets have implied: “Processed…

Last week, The New York Times published an op-ed by Roger Cohen, its International Affairs and Diplomacy correspondent, regarding…wait for it – gluten!1 Has gluten become the nefarious “sticking point” that underlies our most critical diplomatic issues? Or was this just another of Cohen’s haughty rants against people who purchase organic food, implement health-optimizing diets, and keep abreast of nutrition science research? Spoiler alert – it’s the latter. The gist of Cohen’s latest article, “This Column is Gluten-Free,” is that wheat has gotten a bad rap, despite graciously feeding the world for the past 12,000 years. Cohen acknowledges that gluten…

The negative health repercussions of consuming grains has been covered to death, over the years. 1 2 3 I will not delve into the many issues with grains – suffice to say their problems have been well documented in many other pieces on this very website including the most recent Wheat Series. In fact, one of the seminal scientific research papers written by Dr. Cordain, “Cereal Grains: Humanity’s Double Edged Sword” magnified the many problems of grain consumption.4 Enough said. However, we are often asked about pseudograins, and if these might somehow be better to consume on a regular basis.…

What’s all the buzz about leptin? With over half the American population trying desperately to lose weight,1 it’s no wonder we’ve become fascinated with a hormone that prompts us to think obesity or starvation. Robert H. Lustig, MD, professor of pediatrics at UCSF and a member of the Endocrine Society’s Obesity Task Force explains “Leptin is a protein that’s made in the fat cells, circulates in the bloodstream, and goes to the brain; it’s the way your fat cells tell your brain that your energy thermostat is set right…and you have enough energy stored in your fat cells to engage…

Symptoms of vitamin E deficiency are rare, but according to at least four national surveys, most Americans consume less than the government’s Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of this essential nutrient.1 The authors of an August 2015 study published in PLOS-One call vitamin E a “shortfall nutrient” because over 90% of Americans consume insufficient quantities and because low vitamin E status has been linked to multiple health consequences, including increased total mortality.2 Vitamin E is clearly important, but can the Paleo diet provide adequate levels? After all, some of the most frequently cited “best dietary sources” aren’t Paleo compliant. Are supplements…

Click Here to Start The Wheat Series from the Beginning! It’s one of the most commonly used analogies in existence and it’s about a game that few want to play. A revolver is loaded with a single bullet. The hapless players take turns putting the gun to their heads and pulling the trigger. The analogy is often used to make a point about the high stakes of luck. Eventually someone gets a loaded chamber and pays the ultimate price. There is a second side to the analogy, however that is frequently overlooked. Regardless of whether you have extremely good or…

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